Quote Originally Posted by Bombshelter View Post
Thanks everybody for the replies! I guess I just needed reaffirmation of what I already knew. We are about the same size & I tried suggesting we switch bikes for a day, but she made an excuse that it wouldn't make any difference! I didn't feel like arguing with her. I didn't know about changing my wheel set out though, thanks for the advice. When you have to struggle with your ego that much on a ride, sometimes it makes me not want to deal with it, but I also realize that's part of the zen that comes from riding & ironically that's exactly why I do it. I have nothing against pushing myself to become stronger, just sometimes it can be demoralizing & I start to question "is this fun?"
I believe it to be a combination of the bike and the rider also as many have attested to here. I know for certain that one of my bikes is faster and climbs better than the other. That being said, your commentary about your friend not wanting to switch bikes with you for you to try her's out is a bit telling in itself. I question if this person is a friend, because a friend would want to help a friend along with coaching you up a hill instead of leaving you behind. I imagine that some people could be possessive about their equipment but still, even swapping bikes out for a couple of hills does not seem unreasonable.

Challenging yourself by trying to ride up to a different skill level is fine but continuosly getting smoked by others would be discouraging. You might want to try riding with other groups of people on occasion and you'll know right off where your comfort level is and whether riding with superior riders is helping or hindering you. Riding should be fun and no, you don't suck - you're out there riding a bike and trying to get better at it. With all your training it sounds like you are.